Social service agencies across the county and in the North Quabbin region have worked to keep the elderly and disabled safe, fed and healthy through the pandemic.
A recent virtual panel hosted by LifePath in Greenfield included Sen. Jo Comerford, North Quabbin Community Coalition Executive Director Heather Bialecki-Canning, LifePath Executive Director Barbara Bodzin and South County Senior Center Director Christina Johnson.
Bodzin said LifePath has learned through the pandemic that it has been safer for the elderly and disabled to receive services at home. Comparatively speaking, significantly fewer people died who were taken care of at home, rather than in nursing facilities. She cited state statistics that show 60 percent of the more than 7,000 deaths throughout the state lived in those facilities, while there have been 283 deaths among people being cared for at home.
Services and how they have been provided changed at LifePath, a nonprofit that serves the most vulnerable populations and helps keep them in their homes. LifePath serves all of Franklin County and Athol, Petersham, Royalston and Phillipston, and some programs are available in Hampden, Hampshire and Berkshire counties during the pandemic.
“We’ve worked out of the office, except for reception and our meals program, but none of our services were interrupted,” Bodzin said.
Daily meals the agency delivers went from hot to chilled to frozen, she said.
“We’ve been doing telephonic evaluations and assessments, instead of in person,” she said. “We wanted limited exposure for everyone.”
Many of the people LifePath serves turned to family and friends during the pandemic, Bodzin said, and many personal care attendants collected unemployment.
“We provided meals, grocery cards, pickup and delivery of prescriptions and essential needs, and more,” she said.
Bialecki-Canning said folks in the North Quabbin area “have been covered” during the pandemic. The coalition has formed and maintained many partnerships over the past few months to help vulnerable people who have run into the same barriers.
“Social isolation has been a huge issue,” Bialecki-Canning said. “But people have been taking advantage of programs. We’ve made sure folks have felt they could contact us to get the support they need.”
She said neighbors have been helping neighbors in many ways, and everyone has been creative about helping each other.
“I’m so impressed with the resourcefulness,” she said.
Comerford, D-Northampton, who heads the Joint Committee on Public Health, said the committee has been working on more support and accountability for nursing homes, as well as hunger, which has been a huge issue and has affected more people than before the pandemic.
The state must improve health care, she said, and must also pay more attention and provide support to home care, because it has better clinical outcomes, provides companionship for elders and the disabled, and is more cost-effective.
Comerford said she filed bills to provide pay to spouses for being primary caregivers at home, more support from Medicare to people who are being taken care of at home, and increased telemedicine. The bills are moving through the legislative process.
“We want to keep looking at the advances in telemed services, especially through a rural lens,” she said. “People want to age in place with independence and dignity. In rural areas, we find issues with being able to use telemed.”
With the high cost of living in Massachusetts, the senator said people are going to need help to be able to age in place. She said people should contact their legislators with any questions or concerns, or if they require help getting something they need.
Community Action Pioneer Valley Executive Director Clare Higgins said the agency is “seeing the big picture while working through the weeds.”
“We have a lot of programs that have helped local people stay warm through the winter with fuel assistance, helped them pay their utility bills, helped them pay their rent and prevent evictions, and have fed them, which is a giant issue,” she said.
While the nonprofit had to change the way it has done some things — for instance, instead of visiting its food pantry, people have to pick up food boxes curbside — Higgins said the changes Community Action has made have been pretty seamless.
Community Action has been providing gift cards for groceries and gas, and has helped grandparents who are raising or helping care for their grandchildren so parents could work. She said the agency has also been helping people, as it has in the past, file their tax returns for free — the taxpayer receives the entire refund, if there is one.
Higgins suggested people visit Look4Help.org for more information about resources.
At the South County Senior Center, Johnson said staff members have continued to work from the office despite it being closed to the public. People have received two to-go meals daily — lunch at lunchtime and breakfast for the next day. The center has delivered to those who could not pick up.
“We’re a small center, so we serve about 50 meals per day, though it’s more when we’re open,” she said. “We have a drive-thru where people can pick up their meals. Many like to use it because they can socialize briefly and that’s the highlight of some of their days.”
She said Senior Center staff members and volunteers make wellness phone calls to check on people each day.
“The biggest issues for most (seniors and people with disabilities) are isolation and loneliness,” she said. “The group we typically service in person like to play cards, sit and talk. They can’t do that right now.”
Johnson said the center has done Zoom calls, there is a pen-pal program that pairs seniors with Sunderland Elementary School students, and the center provides gift cards and a food box program monthly.
The center does not yet have plans to reopen, but is discussing whether there is a way to get people together outside so they can see friends again until reopening plans are solidified.
“We’ll probably have a ‘new normal,’” Johnson said, “but this vulnerable population just needs to be around people again.”
Reach Anita Fritz at 413-772-9591 or afritz@recorder.com.